New Beginnings
by BedOfScorpions
Summary: 100 delinquents are sent down to Earth to see if it's survivable. However, radiation isn't what they need to be worried about. Ali has spent the last few years of her life living with the Murphy family after the passing of her father. John Murphy isn't the only familiar face she finds on the ground though. Will Ali's training be enough to survive Earth and the people on it?
1. Chapter 1

I do not own anything to do with the 100.

This story is rated M for later chapters. This is my first story so please feel free to comment and give advise or criticism.

Enjoy!

* * *

 _We're all going to die._

The thought races through my head over and over again as the drop ship hurtles through the atmosphere and towards the ground below. Gripping onto my harness, I shut my eyes tight and fight the nauseous waves that tear through the pit of my stomach.

The landing is sudden and painful. When everything finally stops, my head is still spinning. I have aches and pains in several spots but in all my confusion, I can hardly make out what feeling are coming from where.

"Listen. No machine hum" a boy notes. It is the first voice I register since the vague announcement the Chancellor made over a large television screen.

My eyes shoot open and my jaw drops in awe. He's right… The usual buzz of the Ark has vanished and all that remains is an eerie silence.

"Whoa" exclaims another, "That's a first".

As if on cue, all of the buckles to our harnesses click open. All around me people begin clambering out of their seats and crowding around the ladder that leads to the lower level of the ship; the exit.

Excitement pulses through me as I push my way towards the ladder. When I reach the lower level I see a man in a guard's uniform standing at the door, ready to open it. A girl I recognize as Clarke Griffin by her blonde locks, the daughter of Doctor Griffin.

"The air could be toxic" she states with an exasperated look.

The man responds casually,

"If the air is toxic, we're all dead anyway".

Recognizing his voice, I creep closer to try and get a better look at him.

I stand on my toes to get a glimpse of what is going on but immediately get knocked to the side as a brown haired girl forces her way through the crowd.

"Bellamy?" she breathes, pausing behind Clarke before rushing up to him.

My memory clicks at the name and I wrack my brain for more details. Bellamy… Bellamy Blake was in training with me to become a guard on the Ark. And yet, I had heard that he was demoted to a janitorial position upon the discovery of his secret sister and the floating of his mother.

 _So where did he get that uniform from?_

I snap back to reality as a boy in the crowd shouts out,

"No one has a brother!" and murmurs erupt around me.

Another girl calls out,

"That's Octavia Blake, the girl they found hidden in the floor!"

The pair have a short exchange before, without warning, the drop ship door opens. A blinding light envelops the ship and I find myself having to shield my eyes and step back. When I open them again, I see Octavia jump onto the ground before shouting in excitement,

"We're back bitches!"

People begin pouring out of the drop ship and before I even have time to process what I'm doing, I am sprinting through the trees at top speed. My lungs burn in the most amazing way as I dodge trees and get used to the rough, untouched terrain of Earth. I finally slow myself to a walk before falling to my knees, staring up in awe at the magnificent trees above me.

As I make my way back towards camp, I can't help but let a smile escape at the sight of dozens of delinquent teenagers jumping and running through the forest.

As I scan through the kids, I realise that I recognize many of their faces. Everyone aboard the ship are people from the sky-box awaiting their trial to determine their fate. My heart leaps.

 _John._

At the age of ten, my best friend, my father, passed away from the same illness that took my mother just a year after I was born.

Orphaned, I was taken in by the Murphy family. John's father had just recently been floated for stealing medicine, and everyone knew his mother had since then developed a drinking problem. She agreed to let me stay with them if I took on enough work to support myself and earn my stay. Most of the money she took from me only went towards feeding her addiction, but it was all I had.

John has been angry since I met him. His father's passing tore a hole in his heart that is not so easily repaired. I experienced firsthand the cruelty of his mother after a few drinks. She was never a mother to either of us. We supported each other for years, telling each other everything and protecting each other from his mother. That is, until I was locked up in the sky-box. Most would say what I did was unforgivable, but not John. John always forgave me and he came to visit me all the time.

When he was locked up, he was put I a different section than me and I never saw him at all. But now, with all of the delinquents from the sky-box here on the ground, I can finally see him again.

I pause at the clearing around the drop ship and scan through the faces. That's when I see him. John is standing near the drop ship wall, picking a fight with the chancellor's son, Wells. I shake my head with a light chuckle, he never was good at making friends. By the time I get there, he is just turning around to leave.

"Hey, tough guy" I chirp, a grin plastered on my face.

John turns to me, his face lighting up when he sees me,

"Ali!"

I throw myself into his arms and hug him tightly.

"God, I missed you so much" I say, not letting him go.

He finally pries my arms off of him and looks me over.

"Holy crap" he gasps, staring down at me.

I look down at myself and then back at him,

"What?!"

"You're still short" he states, a smirk playing at his lips.

I punch him playfully in the chest, shaking my head,

"I see your lame sense of humor hasn't changed".

He chuckles before grabbing my arm by the wrist and lifting it to look at the tattoo that runs from my shoulder to my elbow,

"No, really though, you have definitely changed. When did you get this?"

"Shortly after you got locked up, I think" I say with a small smile, "I got one on my wrist here too, for you"

I lift my other arm up and show him the tattoo of a small bird with its wings spread in flight.

He takes my wrist in his hand and smiles down at me.

"I love it" he says before hugging me once more.

As I step back, a boy approaches us. I recognize him as one of the guys John was with when he was fighting Wells.

"Murphy, I found some more guys to group with, you're gonna wanna come meet them" he says, pausing when he notices me.

I give John a funny look, since when did he start going by Murphy?

He turns to face the boy and nods, before gesturing to me.

"This is Ali by the way. She's my adopted sister".

The boy reaches out a hand and I shake it.

"Miller. Nice to meet you" he says.

"Same to you" I say, giving Murphy a questioning look.

I'm not surprised to find the teenagers already splitting into groups, but I find myself surprised at John's eagerness to join one so quickly. This guy doesn't seem like his usual crowd.

"I have to go, but I'll come find you in a bit, ok?" he says, already backing away in pursuit of Miller.

I nod at him before heading back towards the drop ship to look for some sort of supplies for shelter.

One thing's for sure, everything is going to be very different here on the ground. For better or for worse.


	2. Chapter 2

Overwhelmed by all of the people and excitement buzzing around our makeshift camp, I find some pieces of metal from the dropship and some material from the seatbelts and chairs before heading off into the trees to find some peace and quiet.

Eventually I settle down on a fallen tree and set to making three knives out of the materials I brought. I hum to myself, enjoying the solitude.

The knives are of poor quality, but coming from a poor family on the Ark, I'm used to making due with scrap bits. As I sharpen the blade, my thoughts drift back to my father.

My father taught me almost everything I know about knives and fighting. The guard training taught me to use guns, but that won't really help me down here. I smile, remembering the constant lessons from my father. He always pushed me further than I thought I could go and it taught me just how capable I can be if I want something bad enough.

The guard, on the other hand, forced you to push _yourself_. If you didn't try to your full potential, they let it slide. The guard wants soldiers who obey their every command, not strong, independent fighters. The self defense techniques they showed us were sub-par and I often got called out for trying to use techniques that were too advanced for my level.

As I recall the guard training, I begin puzzling over Bellamy once more. It just doesn't add up. Sure, Bellamy was a great fighter and would have made an excellent guard, but the deserving do not always get. Even more confusing is why they would send him down here with us.

The more I think about it, the more I'm convinced, Bellamy had an in somehow. He wanted to come down here with the prisoners and someone helped him or made some sort of deal. An obvious reason to want to come down here would be his sister, Octavia, however I find it hard to believe that's his only motive.

Lost in thought, it takes me a moment to register that someone is watching me. I stand up immediately, brandishing my makeshift knife.

"Whoa there tiger, you can put that down. I didn't mean to startle you"

Of course it would be the ex-guard trainee himself.

I don't lower the knife, looking at him expectantly.

"Can I help you?" I grit out, still suspicious.

He gives a shrug, taking a step closer.

"Don't" I say, stopping him in his tracks.

He raises his hands up in surrender, standing a few feet away.

"Look, I heard you humming while I was out scouting the area. I thought you might be lost or something" he says, trying to convince me with his eyes.

I huff, sitting back down on my log and continuing to work on my knife. I'm embarrassed at myself for not noticing him sooner and it's put me in a defensive mood.

"I take it you're not lost then" he chides, approaching the log slowly.

I grab another knife and start to sharpen it.

 _Why does he put me on edge so much?_

He sits down on the log next to me and I feel the hairs stand up on the back of my neck.

 _Relax, Ali, he's just sitting down. Why the hell are you so nervous?_

I side glance at him as he picks up the finished knife from next to me.

"This is impressive" he states, examining the weapon, "We could definitely make use of some of these".

I shrug, pointing to the blade,

"They really aren't difficult to make. This is metal from the drop ship and this here is from one of the seats…" I trail off, pulling my hand back and focussing back on the knife in my hand, reminding myself that I still don't quite trust this guy.

He nods, and we sit in silence for a moment. I try to block out his presence, as distracting as it is. I need to get these knives finished soon so we can go out hunting and find some protein.

"I'm Bellamy" he says suddenly.

I nod, "I know who you are".

I enjoy the look of surprise on his face.

"You do?"

He sounds almost worried and I find myself wondering why he feels threatened by that.

"Ali Kaspen. I was in training to be a member of the guard, like yourself" I say vaguely.

He seems to relax slightly.

"The name rings a bell. Wasn't your father in the guard too?" he asks.

My heart throbs at the mention of my father and I have to swallow back the lump in my throat.

"Yes. Speaking of which, I don't recall you ever making it to a full-fledged guard, Bellamy Blake" I say casually.

 _It's my turn to get some answers._

He shifts uncomfortably, "No, I didn't. Neither did you".

I smirk at our back and forth accusations.

"The uniform looks good on you though. I can't help but wonder where you got it from".

He stands up, looking down at me with a serious look on his face and I stare back at him innocently, head tilted slightly.

"Listen, _Ali_. You're right, this isn't mine. I needed to get down here to protect my sister so I did what I had to do. But I'm in a good place with these people right now and I'm not about to let you screw things up for me".

I stand up calmly, less than a foot away from him. I can feel the heat radiating off of his body, smell the scent of pine on his skin. I meet his glare with my own, icy blue against smoldering brown. However, I find myself at a bit of a disadvantage height wise. He stands almost a whole foot taller than I, a mere 5'2 girl.

"We've all done things to get ourselves sent down here. So let's get one thing straight, _Bells_ , I'm not scared of you. Don't think you can intimidate me into silence because that'll only piss me off".

Slowly, a small smile appears on his face and I'm taken aback slightly.

"Alright" he says, backing off.

The tension dissipates and he turns to head back to camp with one last glance at me.

I release the breath I hadn't realised I was holding and stare at the retreating form of Bellamy as he walks away.

I frown at the way he can get under my skin so easily.

 _Who does he think he is?_

Throwing my hair up into a loose bun, I rub my hand along the back of my neck and shoulder, letting out a sigh.

 _I really need to relax._

Scooping up the three knives I made, I make my way back towards camp to look for John.


	3. Chapter 3

As I approach the drop ship area, I hear the sounds of laughter and cheering. I roll my eyes at the noise.

 _It's all fun and games until we're starving to death with no supplies._

As I get closer, I see the glow of a fire and feel a wave of relief that these rowdy teenagers managed to do at least one thing productive with their time. I had managed to find some edible plants along the way back and so I make my way towards the fire to find John.

Wells, the chancellor's son, arrives just before I do.

"What the hell are you doing?" he says, marching up to Bellamy.

I pause a few paces away, taking in the situation. There is a long line of people around the fire, Bellamy at the center of attention… as usual. I lean to my right to look around the fire and see what all the commotion is about, and the first thing I notice is John and Miller, holding down teenagers one at a time and using a piece of metal to pry off their wristbands. I can't help but sigh in annoyance at John's desire to stir up trouble around here.

"We're liberating ourselves. What does it look like?"

Bellamy's cocky response brings my focus back to their conversation. By this point, several of the other delinquents have begun to take notice of their disagreement.

"It looks like you're trying to get us all killed" Wells states matter-of-factly, turning to address the crowd instead, "The communication system is dead. These wristbands are all we've got. Take them off, and the Ark will think we're dying; that it's not safe to follow".

Bellamy takes a step closer, that cocky smile still prevalent on his face.

"That's the point, Chancellor" he drones before raising his voice to call out to the crowd while still staring down Wells, "We can take care of ourselves, can't we?"

All around us the kids shout out "Yeah!" cheering him on.

 _What a joke…_

I look around at the people around me and I can't help but laugh at their blind obedience to this ex-guardsman. He definitely know how to work up a bunch of criminals.

"You think this is a game?" Wells shouts, clearly exasperated. "Those aren't just our friends and our parents up there. They're our farmers, our doctors, our engineers. I don't care what he tells you. We won't survive here on our own, and besides, if it really is safe, how could you not want the rest of our people to come down?"

I look from Wells to Bellamy. Wells has sound logic whereas Bellamy is relying on the oversized egos and pride of a bunch of kids to prove his point.

Yet somehow, Bellamy doesn't falter. He grits his teeth and addresses Wells more than anyone around him,

"My people, already are down. Those people, locked my people up. Those people killed my mother for the crime of having a second child. Your father did that."

Wells tries weakly to defend his father, but Bellamy won't have it.

"Here, there are no laws" he says, the delinquent kids all nodding in approval.

Yet again, Bellamy breaks into another speech,

"Here, we do whatever the hell we want whenever the hell we want. Now, you don't have to like it, Wells. You can even try to stop it or change it, kill me. You know why? Whatever the hell we want".

My eyes snap to John who breaks the tense silence.

"Whatever the hell we want!" he calls out.

Just like that, everyone begins to chant,

"Whatever the hell we want, whatever the hell we want!"

 _You've got to be kidding me._

Bellamy looks around, proud at his victory. Wells just seems exhausted from it all, heading off the way he came.

I take a few steps forward, coming to stop beside Bellamy.

"You really think this no rules thing is gonna work?" I say, looking into the fire, watching as John starts on another person's wristband.

Bellamy looks down at me, noticing my presence for the first time since I'd arrived.

"Maybe. We're on the ground now, we don't need the Chancellor or his shitty rules".

Again, I try to hold back laughter, earning me an annoyed look from Bellamy.

"What?" he snaps, moving to stand in front of me so all I see is his chest blocking my view.

Slowly, my eyes trail up to his, keeping a bored, nonchalant expression on my face.

"Oh it's nothing… I just didn't think you of all people were such an ignorant fool".

"You'd better watch yourself, Kaspen" he says, his voice low and threatening.

I smirk at him, "Whatever the hell we want"

I give him a condescending pat on the cheek and his hand whips up to grab me by the wrist.

He stares me down, an angry heat in his eyes.

He has a firm grip on my wrist, enough to lightly bruise it, and I feel my heart start racing at the confrontation. Or perhaps it is because of the proximity, without being able to let myself look away.

As if our little exchange wasn't intense enough, suddenly, water begins to cascade in drops from the sky, drenching everyone in the clearing.

Bellamy and I don't break eye contact and I can feel the water dripping off my hair and onto my face, drops of it clinging to my eyelashes and lips. Our breath appears in small puffs in the cool air, the rain making me shiver slightly.

After what feels like forever, he drops my arm, turning around to walk towards the fire like nothing ever happened.

The tension fades and I suck in a huge breath of air, letting all of the stress leave my body. I notice the cheers and celebration of everyone around me and allow myself to celebrate a little too at the thought that we could now collect some drinking water.

Looking up to the sky, I close my eyes, grinning at the sensation of the rain soaking my clothes and making my tank top cling to my body. I open my eyes again and see Bellamy a little ways away, watching me with an unreadable expression. Chuckling to myself, I ignore him, closing my eyes again and reaching my arms out to the sides, taking it all in.

"Ali"

I drop my arms, my breath catching as I expect to see Bellamy standing there again.

"You're going to catch a cold out here with no jacket or anything"

It was John.

"But it's so amazing!" I say, beaming up at him.

His lips turn up in a half smile, looking down at me.

"It sure is, now let's get inside and dried off before we get sick" he says, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and pulling me against his chest. I wrap my arms around his back and sigh against him, taking comfort in his familiar scent.

He pulls away, keeping his arm around me as he leads me towards the drop ship where people are starting to gather, preparing beds and such.

I glance over my shoulder and catch Bellamy's eyes again but he looks away right away and walks off to talk to Miller.

"Come on" John says, ushering me into the ship.

When we arrive, the lower area is already packed with teenagers. We pick our way through all the people and makeshift bedding, trying to get to the ladder to the next level.

The second level is better with a few spots open, however there is little room to actually lie down anywhere. We get to one of the back corners and I see John's coat on one of the seats. He grabs it and sits down on some cushions on the ground.

"A few of us were working on making some tents today, they should be up by tomorrow night so we can actually have a decent place to sleep" he says apologetically.

I plop myself down in front of him, sitting between his legs and leaning my back against his chest and the seat next to us, both of our clothes wet and cold.

"Don't worry, it's not so bad" I say, trying to be positive. But looking around I realise it won't be long before kids start getting sick unless we manage to get this place patched up and keep some dry clothes around.

Murphy reaches past me and wraps his dry jacket over us like a blanket, leaning back against the wall and tucking his arms under the coat, wrapping them around my waist. I curl up, turning sideways slightly so my legs drape over his right one and I can lie leaning against him more. I revel in the extra warmth and start to feel my eyelids drooping.

"Oh, John, before I forget" I say, slipping my hand into my pocket and pulling out the berries I found earlier. "These are edible. We probably won't have much else to eat for a while"

We divide and eat them, realising how hungry we are.

"And…" I start, reaching for my other pocket. I have to slide my hand underneath me and lift my hips a bit to get to the pocket that is lying up against his leg. 

"Made you a present" I say, pulling out one of the small knives wrapped in leaves.

He takes it from me, pulling off the protective leaf coverings. He smiles at the "JM" carved into the handle.

"Thanks, Sunshine" he says, tucking it away next to him.

I smile at the nickname he used when we were kids. He started calling me Sunshine when I got too mad at him for calling me Blondie. That, and the bitter moods I'd get in whenever I thought about my father.

Letting my eyes close, I fall asleep to the sound of John's heart beating in rhythm with my own. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Ali' POV:**

Late in the night, I'm half asleep when I hear the sound of hushed voices and John shifting underneath me. Instinctively, when I feel John trying to move, I cling tighter to him, gripping his shirt in my hand. Tired, I start drifting back into sleep.

I barely register some more muffled conversation before I'm being lifted up into the air.

"John…" I murmur, irritated.

I snuggle my face into his shirt, breathing in the scent of pine. Then, I'm placed back on the cushions on my own, a jacket thrown over me once more. I adjust slightly to the less comfortable position and drift back to sleep.

 **Bellamy's POV:**

I climb up to the second floor of the dropship, careful not to step on any of the sleeping forms. It takes me a few minutes to find him in the dark ship, but finally I see Murphy sleeping up against the corner wall of the dropship.

As I get closer, I notice the small form of Ali curled up in his arms. My immediate response is annoyance, frustration even. I mentally shake myself. Why should I have any reason to be annoyed? The two are obviously close, they have been since they got here. If I want Murphy on my side, I'm going to have to deal with bumping into this girl a lot.

Before I can change my mind, I shake Murphy's shoulder lightly, waking him up.

"Bellamy? What's up?" he asks, his voice groggy with sleep.

I put a finger to my lips, gesturing to Ali.

"I need your help with something. Get up".

I wait as Murphy shifts around, trying to move the sleeping girl without waking her.

"Hurry up" I mutter, frustrated.

"She's trying to grab on to me, why can't I just wake her up?" he says.

I rub my forehead with my fingers, contemplating. After a moment I sigh, leaning down and putting an arm under her shoulders and another under her knees. I pull her against me and lift her up while Murphy gently tugs her hand away from his shirt. I find myself pleasantly surprised at how light and delicate she feels in my arms.

"John…" she murmurs sleepily, burying her face into my chest.

I swallow hard as a feeling I can't explain washes over me. I drink in her flowery scent, confused by my own reaction.

"Okay" says Murphy distractedly, pulling on his jacket.

I immediately kneel down and place Ali back onto the cushions they were using for bedding, my lips turning up slightly as she tries to cling onto my shirt when I put her down.

 _How the hell is she able to sleep so well in this place…?_

When I stand up, I look to Murphy and get back into business mode.

"Go meet Miller outside. He's getting some more guys and you're going to go with them to a hill not too far from here. Stay out of sight until my command. We're going to get the Chancellor kid's bracelet, whether he likes it or not".

Murphy nods, quickly making his way towards the ladder.

I go to walk away but pause instead, turning back to Ali. She is huddled against the cool wall now in just her wet tank top. I look over my shoulder for a moment before stripping off my jacket. Tossing it gently over her sleeping form, I turn around and head outside to find Wells.

 **Ali's POV:**

When I wake up, my neck is stiff from leaning against the drop ship.

"John?" I mumble, realising just as I say it that he's gone.

I sit up and the jacket slides off me onto my lap.

 _Wait, this isn't John's…._

Picking it up, I examine the jacket, wondering whose it is. All it took was for me to smell it to know exactly who put it there. I breathe in the Pine and woodsy smell, puzzled at why I'd be sleeping with Bellamy Blake's jacket.

 _Oh._

"Uuugh. Damn it Ali!"

I groan, smacking the palm of my hand to my forehead. That wasn't John picking me up last night, it was Bellamy.

 _Well that explains where John went._

I look over to where John stashed his knife I gave him; gone.

Getting up quickly, I pick up my own knife, tucking it into my belt. I shiver at the cool air on my damp clothes and, begrudgingly, throw on Bellamy's jacket. Tucking the last knife into the pocket, I go outside to see what the heck John is getting himself into this time.

Just as I reach the drop ship door, a scream rings out across the clearing. I rush as fast as I can towards the source.

I make it there just as Bellamy himself shows up, Wells in tow.

My heart drops as I set eyes on John, holding a girl in an arm lock over the fire.

"Bellamy. Check it out. We want the Ark to think that the ground is killing us, right? Figure it'll look better if we suffer a little bit first" he says, a smirk on his face.

Instantly, Wells is on him.

"Let her go!" he yells, tackling John to the ground.

Before I can even process what I'm doing, I throw myself at Wells. Ripping him off of John, I jump on top of him, knees straight to the lungs. With my small size, I know I can't hold him down for long so, before he can recover his breath I pull my fist back and hammer him in the face twice, as hard as I can.

Rolling off of him just before anyone can manage to grab me and pull me away from him, I rush over to where John is getting up and I stand in front of him protectively.

"Don't ever touch him again" I growl, glaring down at Wells who has just started getting up again.

Wells looks from me to Bellamy.

"You can stop this" he says to Bellamy who is looking at me in surprise.

Bellamy looks to Wells, smirking.

"Stop this? I'm just getting started" he smiles.

I turn around to see if John is okay, but before I can say anything he pushes past me and heads straight for Wells.

The two start throwing punches and fighting.

I give an exasperated sigh and step forward to go and defend John, but before I can get anywhere, a strong hand grips my by the arm, tugging me back out of the way. I whip my head around to see who the hell is trying to stop me from helping John and see none other than the intense brown eyes of Bellamy Blake.

"Let me go. Now!" I yell, yanking my arm away.

He grabs me again with his other hand and then puts me in an arm lock, holding both my arms behind me. He turns to Miller.

"Hold her back and _do not_ let her get away" he says, turning back to the fight.

When Wells finally throws John down and turns to talk to Bellamy, John is up in an instant.

"You're dead" he growls, pulling out the knife I gave him.

"John st—" I'm cut off as Miller clamps a hand over my mouth.

Bellamy steps forward to intervene and I relax for a moment, they'll listen to him.

"Wait. Fair fight" he says, tossing something on the ground at Wells' feet.

I squint my eyes to look at it and realise the knife he threw down there is one of mine

 _God damn Bellamy, of course he'd take my knife._

I watch in horror as Wells picks up the knife and goes after John. They circle each other for a bit and I can barely watch. I know John isn't the best fighter. He doesn't have experience with a knife at all.

It doesn't take long for Wells to pin John with a knife to his throat.

I shove my elbow into Miller's stomach and spin around, yanking my arms away from him.

Bellamy catches me again before I can get to John and Wells, but I stop anyways at the sound of Clarke Griffin's voice.

"Wells! Let him go!"

Bellamy lets me go when he sees his sister limping into the clearing.

I rush over to John, grabbing him by the shoulders and looking him over.

"Hey. You okay?" I ask, tilting his face to look at a cut.

He shrugs me off, still cooling down from his outburst.

Ignoring his attitude, I throw my arms around him and hug him tightly.

"I worry about you" I whisper as he finally reciprocates my embrace.

"Attacked? By what?"

Bellamy's question catches my attention.

"Not what. Who. It turns out, when the last man from the ground died on the Ark, he wasn't the last Grounder."

A chill runs through me at Finn's ominous statement.

"It's true. Everything we thought we knew about the ground is wrong. There are people here, survivors. The good news is, that means we can survive. Radiation won't kill us" Clarke states, looking around at everyone.

"Yeah, the bad news is the Grounders will" Finn says, stepping up beside Clarke.

I look around at them, but I don't see one of the boys who left with them.

"Where's the kid with the goggles?" I ask, directing my question at Clarke.

She looks at me, a grim look on her face.

"Jasper was hit. They took him".

 _Shit_.

As she turns her attention to Wells and his missing wristband, I head back to the drop ship, picking up my knife on the way.

 _Time for some real action._


	5. Chapter 5

After packing up whatever I can that might be useful, I sit on a log by the fire pit, staring into the flames, waiting for Clarke to leave so I can tag along. I watch Bellamy bandage his sister's leg a little ways away, deep in thought.

I can't help but compare my relationship with John to Bellamy and Octavia's relationship. I've lived with John for years and we've grown very close. And yet, Bellamy and Octavia act nothing like us. Octavia is constantly trying to prove her independence to her brother and they constantly bicker and fight.

Is that what blood siblings are like? They don't hug much or try to spend time with each other? Hell, Octavia went off into the forest with four strangers and he didn't even go with her. John would never let me go alone. Would he?

Ever since I can remember, John has made me feel safe. When I had nightmares, I'd sleep with him. When his mother went on drunken rants, he would protect me and we would hide away together.

I hear arguing at the drop ship entrance and stand up. I meet Clarke outside as she leaves the drop ship.

"Hey" I say, standing in front of her.

She looks me over, "Ali, right? I knew your father once. "

"Yeah that's me. Listen, I'm coming with you. I don't really know Goggles but I do know how to fight".

The girl looks down at me, her eyes skeptical.

"You need whoever you can get, Clarke" I state.

She nods, starting to walk towards the exit.

"You're right. Be careful though" she says.

I follow behind her, noticing Wells joining us. She stops in front of Bellamy and Octavia.

"You guys leaving? I'm coming too" Octavia says, wincing as she tries to stand.

Bellamy immediately protests and Clarke is quick to turn her down also.

"He's right. Your leg is just going to slow us down. I'm here for you".

She directs the last part at Bellamy.

"I hear you have a gun" she says.

Bellamy lifts up his shirt to show a gun tucked in his waistband.

"Good" she says, "Follow me".

Immediately he stops her.

"And why would I do that"?

Clarke, expecting such a response, gives him a reason he can't resist.

"Because you want _them_ to follow you, and right now, they're thinking only one of us is scared."

With that, she leaves, not waiting for a response.

 _I like this girl._

I look at Octavia, giving her an apologetic smile.

"Hey, we'll bring Jasper back. He's going to be ok".

She nods, "Thanks Ali".

As I wonder who told her my name, Bellamy orders 'Murphy' to join us and I immediately feel better about not having to be alone with Bellamy.

We all set off into the woods and I just catch Wells saying to Clarke, "Those guys aren't just bullies, Clarke. They're dangerous criminals. Even the girl, she's no petty thief from what I hear."

Rolling my eyes, I keep a steady pace behind the pair, ignoring their conversation and instead, listening to Bellamy talk to John.

"The Ark thinks the prince is dead. Once they think the princess is, too, they'll never come down. I'm getting that wristband, even if I have to cut off her hand to do it" He says, and I find myself weary of him. I still have my bracelet but he hasn't asked me to take it off yet, probably because I have nobody who cares about me up there anyways.

It isn't long before Bellamy starts up an argument about Clarke's bracelet, waving his gun about like it's a bloody toy.

Clarke doesn't falter though, gun or not.

"The only way the Ark is gonna think I'm dead is if I'm dead. Got it?" she says, keeping steady eye contact.

Bellamy smirks, "Brave princess".

Suddenly, Finn comes marching through the bush.

"Hey, why don't you find your own nick name?" he says, "You call this a rescue party? We need to split up, cover more ground. Clarke, come with me".

I narrow my eyes at him. Since when does he make the rules?

I look to John and he moves to walk next to me before Bellamy speaks up.

"Murphy. Keep an eye on him, will you? I'll take care of her" he says, talking like I'm not even there.

John glances at me before following Wells down another route.

I keep walking as if I'm not completely tense being stuck with Bellamy.

"The jacket looks good on you. I can't help but wonder where you got it" he smirks, repeating what I said to him about his guard uniform when he found me in the woods.

"About that" I start, "I'm sorry. I totally thought you were John… You can have your coat back if you want"

He glances at me.

"You two are pretty close" he states.

This time I look up at him.

"So?" I question, confused by the random statement.

"So, how do you know each other?" he asks, his voice curious, not his usual accusing tone.

"I have been living with him for years since my father's passing. He's my best friend" I say with a shrug, assuming everyone already knew that.

"Really?" Bellamy asks, "Huh".

"Why is that surprising?" I ask, getting defensive.

Our pace has slowed to a casual walk now.

"So do you have feelings for him then? Is that why you don't just call him your brother?" he asks with a shrug.

I immediately let out a laugh, shaking my head. "No way! He's just… I don't know. But it's not like that, it's not romantic".

"Have you ever even been with someone?" He asks slowly, "I find it hard to believe you don't know what your feelings are".

I swallow the nervous lump in my throat that appears at his question.

My mind goes into overdrive, flashing back to the all-too vivid memory of Nick from Guard training.

 _Rough hands holding me down… Lips forced against lips, teeth, blood, pain. I can feel his fingers digging deep bruises into my arms and thighs. The horrible piercing pain of his forced entry and the emotional scar of his assault. No escape… Can't breathe… Fight back… fight back… fight back fight back fight back._

"I didn't mean to hurt him" I mumble.

Bellamy stops me, "Hey… are you okay?"

I snap out of my thoughts and back to reality, giving him a puzzled look.

"You're crying…" He says, confused, "Was it something I said?"

I roughly wipe away the few escaped tears, looking away from his intense eyes.

"I don't want to talk about it" I snap, speeding up again to walk just in front of him.

When everyone meets up again, we end up following Finn as he tracks his way towards Jasper. That is, up until we hear Goggles himself moaning in the distance.

When we reach an open clearing, we see Jasper strung up like live bait in a tree. I am instantly suspicious, keeping back from the tree. Clarke rushes forward and I just have enough time to call her name before she steps on a patch of leaves and it collapses beneath her.

In a split moment decision, Bellamy reaches out and grabs her by the wrist before she could fall. We all rush to his side to help pull her up, and I notice his gun has fallen on the ground behind him. I scoop it up and watch as Bellamy exchanges a look with Clarke before finally pulling her up.

Finn and Clarke both seem frightened by Bellamy and his hesitation, and when Finn and John climb up the tree he leaves Wells to watch Clarke.

As Finn works on cutting the vines, the four of us on the ground suddenly hear a noise coming from the bushes.

Clarke calls out, "Bellamy, gun!"

But it isn't Bellamy who has the gun now. A vicious snarling rips across the clearing and in an instant, a black shape rushes towards us.

 _Bang Bang_

I fire two shots at it and it runs back into the bush. I watch for movement and just as the beast rushes straight for Bellamy, I step in front of him and fire a shot right between its eyes.

The large cat collapses right at our feet and I let out the breath I'd been holding.

I turn around, looking up at Bellamy. His expression of surprised relief mirrors my own and I slowly lift the gun up and hold it out to his chest. He puts a hand over mine, taking the gun and holding it there for a moment.

"Thanks for that" he says quietly.

I nod, looking up to where Finn and John crouch watching the scene below.

"Hey guys, you might want to hurry up" I call up.

As the two boys work on getting Jasper down to where Clarke and Wells wait, Bellamy and I wrap up the big cat with some parachute Wells brought.

As we tie a knot around the makeshift bag, Bellamy looks up at me from under his shaggy bangs,

"You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

 _You have no idea._


	6. Chapter 6

There is a mixed vibe when we arrive back at camp. Clarke, Wells, and Finn usher Jasper into the drop ship, Monty waiting with baited breath.

Bellamy and John on the other hand strut into the clearing, throwing down the bag holding the black cat I'd killed.

"Who's hungry?!" he calls out, standing proudly over the beast.

Hoots and cheers erupt from the crowd and the two begin ordering people into a line while some others set it up to cook over the fire.

I shiver at the cool air, pulling Bellamy's jacket tighter around me. I look over at him, noticing that he's found a new one somewhere.

 _Well, I guess he won't be needing this back then._

I duck into the drop ship, climbing the ladder up to see how Jasper is doing. Clearly the grounders wanted to keep him alive long enough for us to find him, the positioning of the spear wound tells us that. However, I doubt they planned for him to make it long after that.

"Clarke" I start, sitting in the ladder entryway.

She looks up at me.

"Be straight with me, is he going to make it?" I say grimly, realizing that with an injury like this one, Jasper won't stay quiet for long.

Shaking her head she gives me an exasperated shrug.

"I… I just don't know yet" she says before glancing at Monty, "But I do have hope. If we can figure out what this poultice is, he might have a chance".

I nod.

"I'll do my best to convince King Bellamy out there to give him a chance then" I say, "Just make sure someone keeps an eye on him, ok? Not everyone is going to deal with the use of sleeping space and the noise well".

She nods at me with a small smile and I head outside again.

I walk around the scene at the fire pit, stopping to the side and leaning up against a tree to observe.

A giant line is wrapped around the fire, a boy is crouched down while his wristband is pried off. Upon the removal of his wristband, Bellamy hands him some panther on a stick, patting him on the back. I scoff, watching as the next teenager crouches down to lose their wristband.

Suddenly Finn walks up out of nowhere, grabbing a stick of meat.

John stands up, glaring at him, "Whoa, whoa. Wait, wait, wait. What, you think you play by different rules?" he asks as Bellamy approaches them too.

"I thought there were no rules" Finn says innocently before walking away, Clarke in tow.

I can't help but grin at his defiance.

As another boy reaches for a stick, Bellamy turns around and punches him in the face. Hard.

I shake my head in humour, he thinks he can control this.

The teenagers settle down a bit at the display. Soon, they are all back in line waiting for food. Someone takes over for John and I watch as he grabs a stick and comes over to where I'm standing. Bellamy watches him go, looking down to my wristband clad arm before turning back to the line to continue his plan.

"Here" John says, handing me the stick.

I frown at him.

"What, you're not going to make me take off my wristband first?" I say sarcastically.

He glances back at Bellamy and then back to me.

"No. Bellamy said I should bring you some. After all, you are the one who killed the thing" he says with a small smile.

I bite into the food, adjusting to the smoky flavour. We sit down and I pass the stick back to John so he can have some.

I end up taking another bite but find myself unable to manage any more. Perhaps it's from not eating much in a few days, or maybe it is the realness of the food compared to the Ark food. Either way, I give John back the stick and try to keep down the two bites that I'd eaten.

"You can have the rest" I mutter, leaning my head back against the tree and closing my eyes.

"Ali, no, you need to eat something" he protests.

"I can't, I'll be sick. I'll eat more later, you go ahead" I insist.

With a sigh, he leaves it at that.

After a while of sitting, we move to the fire where most of the teenagers have left to get some sleep. We sit down on one of the logs and I put my hands out to warm them over the fire. I look over and notice John's eyelids drooping as he stifles a yawn.

I'm about to suggest he get some sleep when Bellamy approaches us, looking to John.

"Murphy. Come with me, Atom can't keep watch tonight so you're taking his place". He turns to leave but stops when I speak up.

"No, wait. He was up all night last night and all day today. He needs rest" I state.

"Ali, stop, I'm fine" John says, standing up.

Bellamy waits expectantly, arms crossed.

"I'll do it" I say, grabbing John's arm before he can go anywhere.

John shakes his head.

"No way, there are grounders and animals and who knows what out there. I'm not putting you in danger like that. I'll be back in a few hours" he says dismissively.

I yank him back and glare up at him.

"That's exactly why I should be out there and not you. Go get some sleep and leave the danger to someone who can actually handle herself" I snap.

 _Please just listen to me, John._

John gives me an annoyed expression, storming off towards the drop ship.

I sigh, looking up to see Bellamy's amused expression.

"What" I sigh.

"For someone so tiny, you sure do know how to pick fights" he chuckles.

My mouth turns up into a half smile and I brush past him.

"For someone so tiny, I also know how to win fights. Let's go" I say, smile growing.

The two of us climb the ridge near camp and sit down where we have a good view of the forest.

For the first while, we sit in comfortable silence. I listen to the chirping of bugs and fiddle with a twig, watching the night.

"Why haven't you asked me to take off my wristband?" I say, my voice sounding out of place in the silence around us.

Bellamy shrugs, looking out at the forest. "I don't plan on forcing you into doing something you don't want to do" he says slowly, glancing up at me to gauge my reaction to the seemly innocent statement.

I look away, suddenly feeling cramped and uncomfortable in the open space.

"Who did you not want to hurt?" he says, his voice quiet, calm.

I wipe my palms on my pants, feeling very cold all of a sudden. I shiver against my will, folding my arms across my chest.

Cautiously, Bellamy reaches an arm around me and pulls me a bit closer. My breath catches in my throat and I still, trying to figure out how I feel about this.

"You're shaking… do you want to go back to camp? I can do this alone for a bit…" he searches for some sort of answer but I shake my head slowly.

"I'm fine… sorry" I mumble, trying to relax with his arm around me.

"Touchy subject then…" he says quietly, not really directed at me.

I let out a shaky breath, leaning into him as we fall back into silence.

 _Something like that…_


	7. Chapter 7

**Bellamy's POV**

After our conversation ends, Ali and I sit quietly, just listening to the sound of the night. She seems to have become more comfortable, her body leaning into mine.

I feel slightly guilty at my intrusive questions about her past, but I couldn't help myself. Never have I been more intrigued about a girl's story than I am with Ali. She's like a complicated puzzle that I just have to figure out, even though I have no final picture to work from.

After a short time, I feel her head droop and see her eyes closing.

Gently, I guide her down so she is lying down over me. She curls up her body, just her head on my legs and her hair, tied up in some sort of bun. I carefully undo her hair, letting it fall loosely over her shoulders and back.

We stay like this for a long time, her, sleeping peacefully while I run my fingers through her long blonde hair.

As I stroke her hair, I feel a small line of raised skin. Pulling back her hair slightly, I notice a thin, jagged, scar that starts at her temple and trails just past her hair line.

I start to feel her shift so I let her hair fall back down and look up at the sky instead, watching the sun begin to creep over the horizon.

 **Ali's POV**

My eyes flutter open to the red orange light of the sun coming up and Bellamy's familiar scent.

 _Wait. When did he become so "familiar"?_

I'm lying down on my side, my head resting on his lap.

I sit up slowly, my cheeks flushed pink in embarrassment.

"How long have I been asleep?" I ask, brushing my hair out of my face.

Bellamy glances down at me, his chocolate brown eyes warm and friendly compared to their usually intensity.

"A while. It's been pretty uneventful" he says with a small smile.

"You should have woken me up… I feel bad!" I say.

He just chuckles, getting up.

"Come on, let's get back to the drop ship. I need to start training people to hunt".

I hop up, following after him.

"And you're an expert hunter then, are you?" I grin.

"Never killed an animal in my life. Especially without a gun. But someone's got to do it" he says.

Back at camp, moans can be heard coming from the drop ship. I head straight there when I'm back, climbing up to see how Jasper is doing.

I get there and find the usual group surrounding him. Octavia sits to the side and I sit down next to her.

"How's it going?" I ask, looking at Jasper.

"Not great. People have been complaining a lot too. As if he can just choose to be quiet whenever he wants".

"That's to be expected" I say with a nod, "Clarke found anything helpful yet?"

Octavia shakes her head, a grim look on her face.

"Well, your brother said he is going to get some people out hunting today so I'm going to go find them, try and bring back some food to keep people in a good mood. Let me know if anything changes ok?" I say, getting up to leave.

"Sure. Good luck" she says with a smile.

"Oh, and Octavia, don't let anyone in here that you don't trust" I add before I close the hatch behind me.

Outside, I quickly find the group Bellamy has gathered for hunting. It's a sad looking group, mainly just whoever volunteered to go. Which, with grounders running about, is not very many. Jasper's moaning still loud and prevalent, even out here.

I mosey into the clearing, watching as John chucks a knife at the tree. It smacks off the side and falls to the ground.

"That damn kid, always messing with my head" he grunts, retrieving his knife.

"He's not gonna last much longer. Better think of a new excuse" Bellamy says, stepping forward to face the tree. He adjusts his grip on a small hand axe before throwing it into the tree. It sticks in on a slight angle.

"That's how it's done" he gloats.

I chuckle, "You got lucky with that one. It's barely in there".

They turn to face me, John already annoyed to know I saw him fail at knife throwing.

"You think you can do better, Kaspen?" he challenges.

I smirk, pulling out my knives. I take one and whip it at the tree where it buries itself deeply just barely above Bellamy's axe. I take the second one and aim it lower, landing it just below the blade of his axe, the two are close enough to loosen the thin layer of bark and wood that his axe had managed to get through. I smile proudly as the axe slips out of the wood and lands on the ground with a thud.

Bellamy brushes past me to retrieve his axe. He picks it up before gripping the handle of the top knife, yanking on it. It doesn't come out at first and he has to use two hands to get it out. Grabbing the second one, he trails back over to me, handing me my knives.

"Show off" he grunts, but his eyes hold amusement.

"Nice job" John says, forcing a smile on his face.

I feel bad for him, he never got the sort of training I had. He never really wanted to learn either when I tried to show him.

"Here" I say, coming around behind him and taking his hand in mine.

I gently lift his arm up and adjust the way he's holding the knife

"Like this…" I smile, showing him what to do.

I maneuver his arm into the proper position, using my other hand to adjust his stance, pressing on his abdomen.

"Use your core for balance and put your feet… here. You have to build up momentum—What is it?" I say, blushing, when I notice him staring at me, some strange expression on his face.

"Nothing" he says, still looking at me.

I shake my head in confusion.

"Ok well, pull your arm back to about here and then throw it fast, but flick your wrist too, put some spin on it. And please don't cut yourself" I chuckle, stepping back to stand next to Bellamy to give John some space.

I watch proudly as he throws the knife and it sticks into the tree. His aim is a bit off, but it's better.

"Nice! Keep practising that and you'll be a badass in no time" I grin, giving him a high five.

When I turn around, Bellamy is watching us intently. Then I see Atom walk up with a few other large guys.

"We searched a half-mile all directions. No sign of Trina or Pascal" Atom says grimly.

John appears at my side.

"Visit your special tree when you were out there?" He asks.

I give him a puzzled look but he just looks at Bellamy.

"Atom took his punishment. Let it go" Bellamy says, ending the discussion.

Ignoring the comment, Atom addresses Bellamy.

"Could be grounders" he suggests.

"Yeah, or they could be in pound town. Lot of that going around recently" John says with a smirk.

Atom again ignores the comment, trying to have a serious discussion.

"Look, Bellamy, people are scared, and that dying kid, he's not helping the morale around here".

Bellamy nods.

"Morale will go up when I find them more food".

One of the other boys speaks up.

"And what do we say when they ask about Trina or Pascal?"

"Now? Nothing. It's possible they're just lost. We'll keep an eye out for them when we go hunting" Bellamy responds.

The men nod at him.

"Let's go kill something" John says, twirling his knife.

The group starts towards the camp entrance but Bellamy puts a hand up to stop John.

"You're not going" he says.

At the look on John's face, he elaborates.

"I need you to stay here. If the grounders are circling, we can't leave this place unprotected".

Satisfied, John nods in agreement. "Fine. Somebody better tell goggle boy to keep it shut. Come on Ali" he says.

"Wait" Bellamy gestures to me, "I need her".

John looks from him to me.

"I thought you needed this place protected?" he says.

"I do. But I also need someone who can hit a moving target, and she's our best bet for getting some real food" Bellamy explains.

"Right. Fine" John snaps, then looks to me. "Take care of yourself out there, ok?"

I nod, pulling him into a tight embrace. He holds me tightly for a moment before letting me go and walking away.

"I have to go have a word with Clarke, I'll meet you out front in five, okay?" Bellamy explains.

"Mmhm, see you there" I say, spinning around and catching up with the hunting group.

 **Bellamy's POV**

Ali's display with her knives is definitely impressive. The way she holds the knives with such grace, yet throws them with so much power amazes me. She definitely didn't learn that from guard training.

She casually strolls over to Murphy, positioning herself behind him. Taking his hand in hers, she lifts herself up on her toes to lean over his shoulder, adjusting his grip on the knife.

I shift awkwardly at the uncomfortable heat burning in the pit of my stomach.

 _Get a hold of yourself Bellamy…_

I watch as she wraps her arm around him, pressing her hand against his stomach to make him tighten his core muscles, her body pressed right up against his back.

It's blatantly obvious that he isn't listening to a word she says, staring at her with a look on his face that I'm sure I've had before.

When she notice him watching her, she laughs it off, stepping back next to me to let him try throwing it again. He manages to stick it in the tree this time, though still slightly crooked.

I roll my eyes as she jumps over to high five him.

 _It was one lucky shot._

"Nice! Keep practising that and you'll be a badass in no time" She grins, turning to face me again, catching me staring.

Atom and some others approach us and I use the distraction to look away.

"We searched a half-mile all directions. No sign of Trina or Pascal" Atom says grimly.

"Visit your special tree when you were out there?" Murphy asks with a snide look on his face.

"Atom took his punishment. Let it go" I snap back, glancing at Ali to see if she had any idea what he meant by that.

"Could be grounders" Atom suggests.

"Yeah, or they could be in pound town. Lot of that going around recently" John says, his eyes giving Ali a once over while she isn't looking his way.

My brows furrow in confusion at this other side to him, but just as I think I'm seeing things, he looks up and winks at me, his usual smirk prevalent.

After all that talk Ali gave about Murphy and her not having anything romantic, I have to believe his little wink is more likely implying his intentions, not something that has already transpired.

"Look, Bellamy, people are scared, and that dying kid, he's not helping the morale around here".

Atoms voice brings me back into the conversation and I just give him the best response. Leading all the time is becoming harder than I expected.

"Morale will go up when I find them more food" I sigh.

One of the other boys asks another question.

"And what do we say when they ask about Trina or Pascal?"

"Now? Nothing. It's possible they're just lost. We'll keep an eye out for them when we go hunting" I respond, trying to end the discussion.

The men seem to approve and I breathe a sigh of relief.

"Let's go kill something" Murphy says, twirling his knife.

 _Ya, I don't think so._

I stop Murphy in his tracks.

"You're not going" I say, my tone final.

I can see that his immediate thoughts are that I don't think he can hunt, so I boost his ego a bit.

"I need you to stay here. If the grounders are circling, we can't leave this place unprotected".

Satisfied, he nods in agreement. "Fine. Somebody better tell goggle boy to keep it shut. Come on Ali" he commands.

"Wait" I say, trying to think of an excuse, "I need her".

Murphy looks between us suspiciously.

"I thought you needed this place protected?" he argues.

"I do. But I also need someone who can hit a moving target, and she's our best bet for getting some real food" I say, grasping at straws.

I try to convince myself that the excuse is true, but the emotional side of me knows that I really just want some distance between her and Murphy.

"Right. Fine" Murphy mutters, "Take care of yourself out there, ok?"

The two embrace for a moment before he finally leaves.

"I have to go have a word with Clarke, I'll meet you out front in five, okay?" I say to her.

"Mmhm, see you there" she smiles, spinning around and catching up with the hunting group.

Watching her go, I can't help but wonder if I should be letting myself spend so much time with her.

 _Ah, screw it. What's the harm?_


	8. Chapter 8

**Ali's POV**

It is about ten minutes before Bellamy emerges from the drop ship looking stressed.

He reaches the group and immediately orders them into the woods. Staying towards the back, he follows the group, his mouth set in a straight line, jaw tight.

I slow my pace a bit to walk alongside him but he remains silent.

"Something happen?" I ask, my voice small.

"Octavia and that damn dying kid" he grumbles vaguely.

"Oh" is all I say.

"I told them that if he isn't better by tomorrow, I'm killing him myself" he says, his voice strained.

I nod in understanding.

"Being a leader means you have to make tough decisions. You'll do what's best for it, no one can deny that".

"You really believe that?" he asks, clearly surprised at my lack of reaction.

"Sure. We've made it this long, haven't we?" I say, throwing him a wink.

It isn't long before we are far enough away from camp to start looking for food. We track a boar's hoof prints through the trees, the group creeping quietly along.

One of the boys to our right gestures towards a spot in front of us and I see the brown-black coloring of a female boar, oblivious to our presence.

Bellamy creeps forward, whispering to the group that he's got it.

What happens next is all a bit of a blur.

A twig snaps behind us and Bellamy whips around to throw his axe in the direction of the noise, the boar spots us and lets out a shocked squeal, turning to run into the bush.

My body reacts before my brain does. The next thing I know, I'm throwing a knife towards the boar, watching it spin through the air as if in slow motion.

The blade strikes its target, but only catches the back end as it disappears into the bush.

 _Damn it!_

The group runs off in search of the wounded boar so I turn to see what Bellamy was so distracted by.

To my surprise, I find Atom and him standing in front of a young girl who looks at least 12. I'm ashamed to note that she isn't really all that much shorter than I am.

Bellamy wastes no time grabbing back his axe which is embedded in the tree next to her head.

"Who the hell are you?" he shouts, clearly panicked at how close he came to hitting her.

"Charlotte" she says weakly, looking up at both of them wide eyed.

"I almost killed you" Bellamy sighs, starting to relax. "Why aren't you back at camp?"

I roll my eyes at her excuse of being unable to listen to Jasper dying any longer.

 _Poor baby. How would you like to take his place?_

Atom shakes his head at her.

"There are grounders out here. It's too dangerous for a little girl" he says dismissively.

"What about her" she whines, looking to me.

The pair turns around to see who she's referring to and I can't help but to laugh, twirling my knife in my hand. I'm short, sure, but I'm no child.

Bellamy smirks, looking back to Charlotte.

"Trust me, that woman is more than capable of taking care of herself" he says.

The girl just looks more frustrated.

"I'm not little!"

Pulling out a knife, Bellamy holds it out to her.

"Okay then… but you can't hunt without a weapon. Ever killed something before?" he asks.

The girl shakes her head "no" but takes the knife.

 _Great, here's hoping she has better aim then John._

He smiles at her, ruffling her hair.

"Who knows? Maybe you're good at it".

Out of nowhere, a horn bellows in the distance.

We all crane our necks trying to look around and find the source. What we do notice is a huge cloud of yellow smoke rolling through the woods.

"Run!" I scream, grabbing the girl by the arm and yanking her forward with me.

"Come on! There are caves this way!" Bellamy shouts and we sprint after him.

The fog approaches ever faster as we race blindly after Bellamy.

"In here!" Bellamy calls out, shoving Charlotte forward.

A thud sounds behind me and I look back to see Atom has tripped, his ankle bent at an unnatural angle.

I stop to run back for him, my heart racing at the proximity of the fog cloud.

Just before I can get anywhere, a firm hand grips my arm and yanks me in the other direction.

"Bellamy! Ali! Wait! Help Me!" Atom's terrified screams are cut short as the fog engulfs him and all that remains is a choking noise and coughing.

The next thing I know, I'm forced into a cave, running blindly forward.

Slowing down, we get to a pocket in the tunnel-like cave where Charlotte cowers, holding her knife. She relaxes when she sees it's us.

I collapse to my knees, the adrenaline leaving my body. I keep picturing Atom, scrambling to get up, and screaming into the fog.

 _I'm sorry…_

We all sit in the dark for what seems like forever before Bellamy speaks up,

"Looks like we're going to be holed up in here for a while… May as well get some rest".

Charlotte finds a spot in the far corner to curl up, lying down but not actually falling asleep.

With a sigh, I go over to her small form and hand her my jacket, forcing a small smile to my lips.

"I'm not tired, go ahead" I say at her hesitation.

I go to sit back down against the wall a little ways away but then Bellamy comes to stop in front of me.

"You should rest too" he says, arms crossed.

"No, _you_ need to rest. I got some sleep last night, now it's your turn".

He sits down next to me, his shoulders drooping in exhaustion.

"Yeah… I do. We both do. Nothing is going to come after us in this fog so let's make the most of the time we've got".

I give him a nod, side glancing at him as he leans his head back against the wall, eyes closed. I smile briefly at how peaceful he looks; all freckles and tousled brown hair.

That's when Atom's image flashes behind my eyes and I look away, clenching my fists until my knuckles turn white.

 _This is going to be a long night._

 **Bellamy's POV**

I wake up with a start to the sound of Charlotte screaming.

I look to my side to see Ali gazing at nothing, her face cold and expressionless.

 _Has she been awake the whole time?_

I rush over to Charlotte, gently shaking her awake.

"Charlotte, wake up" I say, sighing in relief when her eyes finally open.

She apologizes quietly to me, looking down at her hands.

"Does it happen often?" I ask, sympathetic.

She just sighs, giving me my answer.

"What are you scared of? You know what? It doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is what you do about it" I say, thinking back to when Octavia would have bad dreams as a kid.

The girl frowns in confusion.

"But… I'm asleep".

"Fears are fears. Slay your demons when you're awake, they won't be there to get you when you sleep" I state as if it's common sense.

"Yeah" she starts, "But how?"

"You can't afford to be weak. Down here, weakness is death, fear is death. Let me see that knife I gave you."

She hands it over and I take the knife in my hand and hold it in front of me.

"Now, when you feel afraid, you hold tight to that knife and you say, 'screw you. I'm not afraid.'"

The girl takes the knife and timidly repeats it back to me.

I look at her pointedly, encouraging her to try harder.

This time she says it louder with more confidence.

Looking back at Ali to see her watching us, I get up, giving Charlotte a pat on the head.

"Slay your demons, kid. Then you'll be able to sleep" I smile, walking back over to where Ali sits.

She looks back at the wall when I approach.

"Hey" I say quietly, sitting back down next to her.

She doesn't respond at first, making me question whether or not she even heard me.

"How do you slay a demon that is already dead?" she says, a grim look on her face.

"Ali…" I start, turning to look her in the eyes.

"You did what you had to do, I know. It's ok" She whispers, looking into my eyes.

"He may still be ok, we don't know for su—"

"He's dead, Bell, there was nothing we could do" she says coldly, cutting me off.

We lock eyes, neither of us knowing what to say about it. I swallow, watching a single tear escape her eye, rolling down her cheek.

"We're not going to make it, are we?" she whispers.

We both know that she isn't referring to us at this very moment, but to our camp as a whole. We can barely get food, grounders are among us, and we can't get to Mount Weather.

"One by one… That's how it's going to end for us. Slowly watching our friends die until we are left alone with only our nightmares".

"No. I won't let that happen" I say, willing her to trust me.

Our faces are centimeters apart. I can count each icy blue fleck in her eyes, see the tiniest tremble in her lip.

I can hear her heart racing in time with my own, both of us frozen in place in the crisp, night air.

"Bell—" she starts, but I don't let her finish.

I close the distance between us, my lips slanting against her own. My hand reaches up of its own accord, cupping the side of her face and drawing her in closer to deepen the kiss.

She gasps against my mouth, leaning into me. She reaches up and tangles her fingers in the back of my messy curls. Her lips are sweet but rough against mine, the heat pulsing through us chasing away the frigid cold of the air.

Pulling my lips away, I tug back on her hair, forcing her head back, exposing the pale skin of her neck. Gripping her waist with my other hand, I roughly kiss her jawline, making my way down her neck, tasting every inch of her.

She pulls back, both of us panting.

I look back at her and see my own lust mirrored in her eyes.

"Do you… do you want to st—"

"Bellamy?" She says, her voice airy.

"Yeah?" I begin to reply before she grabs me by both shoulders.

She pushes me back until I'm lying on my back, her toned legs straddling my hips.

"Stop talking" She whispers, bending to crush her lips against mine again.

She grinds against me and I can't hold back a moan, my baritone voice sounding deep and husky compared to her light and silky one.

My hand slides under her tank top, fingers dragging down her back in utter pleasure.

I feel my erection pushing against her thigh, pausing from our kiss to let out a struggled groan as her hand slides under my shirt and she pushes harder against me. My eyes are dark with lust and I try desperately to control myself, failing miserably. All of the tension building between us snapping in this moment. She continues to tease and tempt me, my body writhing underneath her, desperately craving more. I've never felt such hot, undeniable passion for someone in my life.

Unable to take the pressure anymore, I grip her in my strong hands, rolling us over so that I'm hovering above her. I use my knee to push her legs further apart, allowing my hardness to rub against her sweet spot. My head is spinning with desire, my hand moves beneath her shirt to cup her breast. I let out a shaky breath, watching as her eyes roll back in pleasure. My other hand slides roughly over to grip her wrist, holding it firmly against the cave floor above her head.

Suddenly, Ali stills beneath me, her other arm reaches up to push on my chest, panic flashing in her eyes.

"No… stop… stop…" she whimpers, her eyes clouded over, no longer seeing me.

I pull away from her in confusion.

"Ali. Ali, it's me. Are… are you ok?" I pant, trying to get some sort of response.

She draws her legs in, curling up against the wall, moving away from me.

I reach for her, trying to provide comfort but fall short when I see the look of fear in her eyes.

"Did I do something wrong?!" I ask, trying not to raise my voice too much. "I'm sorry, I thought you were enjoying it… I … I didn't mean to take it too far… Ali, talk to me" I plea, searching her face for some sort of response.

She looks up at me, her expression dazed and confused, lips still swollen from our exchange. Then, her expression changes to one of guilt.

"Bellamy… I'm so sorry" she whimpers, her eyes glassy with unfallen tears.

I take her in my arms, pulling her into a hug.

"It's ok… shhh… breath. I'm not going to hurt you" I whisper softly as she chokes back sobs, crying into my shirt.

I stroke her hair, holding her tightly as her sobs turn to whimpers and her whimpers to hiccups and sniffles. I lean against the wall, wincing slightly as her hips press against my now very sensitive parts. I adjust our position ever so slightly so that I'm less sore, waiting for the feeling to pass.

Time passes slowly, but finally her breathing evens out and she manages to drift into shallow sleep. I lie her down with me, tucking her against my chest to keep her warm. With a sigh, I kiss the top of her head fondly, letting myself drift off as well with her wrapped tightly in my arms.

 _Goodnight… Ali_


	9. Chapter 9

**Ali's POV** :

I lie still, wrapped in Bellamy's strong arms. Unable to stay asleep any longer, I allow myself the comfort of lying with him a while longer.

Guilt creeps into my thoughts as I play over the events of last night over and over again in my mind.

 _He probably thinks I was just playing him the whole time._

I mentally curse myself for letting things get as far as they did. Every time I've ever gotten at all intimate with anyone, my brain just shuts down on me, taking me back to that night…

I shiver involuntarily, and not from the cold.

A weak smile forms on my lips as Bellamy, as if by reflex, tightens his arm around me, pulling me flush against his warm body. Turned to face him now, I can see he is still asleep.

Watching him with soft, curious eyes, I slide my hand up to lightly trace his jawline before moving to his lips. I run my index finger gently over the small scar above his upper lip. I pull my hand away just to replace it with my lips. I press a tender kiss on his mouth, my heart aching at the thought that I just can't let myself be with him.

Bellamy Blake. I marvel at the way he could go from being so aggressive and threatening to suddenly seeming like the most trustworthy and gentle soul. Our leader. Letting my eyes drop, I push the thought aside.

I'm scarred. Broken. I don't know if I can ever be ready to feel for someone in the way that he wants me to feel. As much as it pains me, I need to keep my distance. I can't let myself fall apart like that again, not with anyone.

I manage to drag myself up and out of his arms, my whole body screaming in protest. It feels like my entire body is made of led.

Bellamy shifts, blinking his eyes sleepily.

I walk away towards the cave entrance before he can try to say anything about what happened.

I come back to find Bellamy turned the other way, stretching out his sore muscles.

I walk past him to get Charlotte up. The girl is curled up under my jacket and I gently take the jacket, slipping it on as she begins to wake up. I give her alight shake on the shoulder.

"Hey, time to get going, it's all clear now" I smile, giving her a hand to help her up.

She takes it, timidly, before going over to Bellamy.

I sigh. So much for trying to be nice.

Bellamy looks at me, his eyes full of questions. So, I hurry outside, avoiding his piercing stare.

The two follow me outside and Bellamy begins looking around for others.

"Anybody out here? Jones?" He calls.

The boy, Jones, responds, coming down the hill nearby.

"We're here!" he shouts with a wave.

"Lost you in the stew. Where'd you go?" Bellamy asks, his voice strong and professional. Nothing like the tone he used last night to console me.

Jones explains that they made it to another cave nearby.

"I take it nobody has seen Atom then" Bellamy says grimly.

Everyone shrugs or shakes their head.

Then suddenly, Charlotte's terrified scream pierces the air. Bellamy rushes towards it and I follow a few paces behind, the rest of the group following suit.

When I arrive, my hand shoots up over my mouth to stop myself from gasping.

Atom lay on the ground, his wounds fatal. Bellamy kneels over him, hands hovering as he desperately tries to figure out what to do.

Charlotte then approaches Bellamy, handing him the knife he'd given her earlier. I watch as she walks back to the group, expressionless.

 _This kid has guts…_

As Bellamy stares down at Atom, the boy begins begging for death. Desperately pleading for Bellamy to end his life.

Bellamy looks up at the group.

"Go back to camp" he orders, his voice somber.

Everyone goes to leave except Charlotte.

"Charlotte, you too" he sighs.

I pause, making sure she actually leaves ahead of me. Once she actually starts walking away, I take another glance at Bellamy. He looks absolutely terrified.

With a heavy sigh, I come to sit across from him.

I look down at Atom who has just noticed that I'm there.

"Pl…ease" he utters, trying to raise his hand.

"Shhhh, it's ok now. I'm going to make sure you're ok" I whisper.

Bellamy, still sitting with the knife resting in his hand stares at Atom, a blank expression on his face.

I reach over Atom's shaking form, slowly taking the knife from Bellamy.

I begin to hum, the same song I was humming when Bellamy first spoke to me.

Gripping the knife firmly, I force away all fear and doubt, stopping any tremor in my hands. Just as my father taught me, I line the knife up with the side of his throat, slipping it in as if it is the most natural thing in the world. I try my best to ignore the sickening sound as I pull the knife out and blood begins to drain from his throat.

The pained expression leaves Atom's face as his heart stops beating. I put the knife down, looking up to see Bellamy staring at me intently.

I turn away, getting up.

"We should take him back to camp… to be buried" I say.

Just then, Clarke shows up accompanied by Finn and Wells.

After explaining the situation, the five of us start on taking Atom's body back to camp.

As soon as we're back at camp, I find John, rushing into his arms. I bury my face in his neck, clinging to him tightly.

"I'm glad you're ok" I whisper.

Bellamy comes up to us after a minute, pausing in front of us, arms crossed.

"You done?" he grunts, causing us to step apart.

 _Why is he so bothered? Jealousy?_

"Lose anyone here?" Bellamy asks.

"No"

"Jasper?" he pries further.

John shrugs.

"Still breathing. Barely. I tried to take him out but your psycho little sister…"

Before he can finish his sentence, Bellamy lunges at him. He shoves him hard before tugging him by the collar to look him in the eye.

"Bellamy, stop!" I growl, stepping forward and grabbing him by the arm.

His arm whips out and he shoves me to the ground before turning his attention back to John.

"Hey!" John shouts trying to yank himself away.

"My what? My what?" Bellamy spits out, glaring at John, his eyes full of fury.

"Your little sister" John mutters.

"Yeah, that's right. My little sister. Got anything else you want to say about her?"

John stares Bellamy down, his face cool and impassive.

"Nothing. Sorry" he sneers as Bellamy lets him go.

Bellamy turns to look at me for a moment before walking away to see to Atom's body.

John angrily flings his knife at a tree and, of course, it actually sticks this time.

I get up, brushing off my pants.

"I'm going to go talk to Octavia" I say to John, my face burning in embarrassment.

He turns to me, "Sure… see you later tonight? I got a tent up over there. It's small but… It's better than nothing."

I smile, "Sounds perfect. I'll come find you in a bit"

When I get up to the floor Jasper is on, I'm pleased to find Jasper awake, his friends crowded around him.

They look up when I arrive.

"Ali, what's up?" Finn asks.

"Oh… well I… I could come back later, I don't mean to intrude" I say.

"No, come on in, we were just having a drink" Monty smiles, holding up a metal container. "Want some?"

I shake my head, coming to crouch next to everyone.

"I'm ok, thanks. I was actually looking for you, Octavia. Thought you could use a distraction and I could really use your help"

The brunette girl perks up at the idea of being included in something.

"What do you need?" she asks curiously.

"Well, on the hunting trip I managed to hit a boar with my knife. It only caught it in the back but it wouldn't have been long before it bled out. If you're up for it, I thought I'd go try and find it. We still have basically no food and I think Jasper here could use some protein to get himself back on his feet".

Clarke nods in approval.

"That would be amazing. But, if you don't mind me asking, why are you asking us for help instead of Murphy? You guys are sort of a… thing, aren't you?"

I give them a puzzled expression.

"John and I aren't a 'thing', honest. We lived together on the Ark, we're just friends. And well, I really don't feel like giving Bellamy and is group the satisfaction of dragging more food back here to get more wristbands. At least this way I know that Jasper and you guys will get a fair share" I say truthfully.

"I'm in! When do we leave?" Octavia beams, clearly pleased with the idea.

"Now, before the animal is dead for too long" I say, happy to have some female company for once.

The two of us take off for the woods, bag at hand, ready to finally get some good food.


	10. Chapter 10

**Ali's POV**

As we exit the dropship, I glance around nervously, keeping an eye out for both Bellamy and John. I don't want either one of them to start asking questions about where we're going and why.

John is out of sight, and Bellamy just entered his over-sized tent.

"Alright, let's move" I whisper, sneaking out.

The next thing I know, Octavia waltzes out of the dropship, passing me.

"What are you sneaking around for?" She laughs, twirling in a circle, her arms out, "We live here, and we can leave whenever we please".

I grab her arm and drag her towards the exit, unable to stop myself from laughing a bit.

"Yea, sure we can. With your brother and his gang of minions in tow ready to steal our food" I say, lowering my voice when I mention the food part.

Octavia rolls her eyes at me but speeds up a bit.

I scan through the trees and brush, looking for any sign of the boar. We are close to the area where I had shot it, and my stomach feels queasy at the unwelcome thoughts of the acid fog and Adam's dying form.

"Are you sure we're looking in the right place?" Octavia asks, her voice echoing in the eerie silence around us.

"Yes, keep an eye out for any disturbances in the mud and plants. She couldn't have gone far".

"We could use more people… it could be anywhere!" she complains, frustrated, "We could make a deal with Bell, he could help us find it—"

"No" I say, cutting her off.

"Why not? I thought you two were getting pretty close, he would listen to you" she says, looking at me.

I cringe inwardly as a blush creeps onto my face.

"We don't need his help" I snap, letting my hair hide my face a bit.

I nearly run into Octavia as she trots around in front of me and stops in my way, grinning at me.

"You like him, don't you" she smirks, trying to gauge my reaction.

I move to step around her but she sidesteps and blocks my path.

"Octavia" I whine, crossing my arms, "we're losing daylight, we have to go find that boar".

"Don't change the subject" she says, mimicking me by crossing her arms.

I sigh, trying to think my way out of this conversation. Something happened between me and Bellamy, there's no denying that. But right now, all I want is to find some food and a warm bed, I don't need boy drama.

"Look, Octavia, I'm not interested in Bellamy. He's a good leader and I respect him for that, but right now food seems a lot more appealing than any guy at camp" I say, trying to sound genuine.

She looks skeptical and I am bracing myself for more questioning when I see movement in the bush behind her.

"Octavia, look" I hiss, pushing past her to get closer to the bush.

She follows behind me and I put a hand up to tell her to stay still. I can see the animal lying on its side, breathing hoarsely.

"She's still alive, which is good for us. I'll finish things, you grab the parachute to carry her with, ok?" I ask, taking out my knife.

She nods and I crouch down next to the creature. I clear my mind of any sentiment I feel for the dying animal and pierce her with my knife. There is a strangled squeal before silence.

"Let's get this home" I say, grinning up at Octavia who looks equally as excited.

When we get back to camp, we bring it straight to a secluded area to get it ready to be cooked. As I work on getting it ready, Octavia runs off to the drop ship to let Clarke and the others know we found it.

I peak over at the fire to see only one girl sitting there warming her hands. Most of the others are working on building a wall under John's supervision.

I walk up to the girl, a purposeful look on my face.

"Hey, Bellamy told me to come find you, he wants to see you in his tent" I lie, smiling at the girl.

Her eyes widen.

"Oh… okay… I'll go find him then" she stumbles, walking towards his tent.

I rush back to grab the boar and bring it back to the fire.

Clarke shows up just in time to help me set the heavy animal up over the fire.

"Good work, Kaspen" she says with a smile. As soon as this is cooked we should cut off a good portion to take to the dropship. Then let the rest of the camp help themselves. Bellamy isn't getting any more wristbands with this one".

I shrug, watching the fire.

"As long as we have enough to get Jasper back on his feet, I don't care much for what happens to the rest".

The animal is only just about ready to eat when Bellamy himself comes marching towards us.

"Here comes trouble" I say to Clarke, moving to stand in front of the fire.

"What's all this?" he asks, looking past us at the boar and then back at us.

Clarke speaks up first.

"We caught something to eat and we are going to take what we want without having to takeoff our wristbands. Whatever the hell we want, right?" she says.

"And by "we", you mean her, right? This was your idea?" Bellamy states, turning his attention to me.

I nod.

"And I have you to thank for sending some poor girl to find me and embarrassing the hell out of her?"

This time, I can't help but smirk, nodding again.

Running a hand through his hair he looks from me to Clarke.

"Fine. Good work on catching it. Help yourselves but next time don't be going out alone like that, it's dangerous".

I bite my tongue about Octavia coming with me. Something tells me that would only make things worse.

"Well we're pretty much done here so feel free to give out the rest" Clarke says, walking back to the drop ship.

I watch her go, a bit annoyed.

"Sure, I'll cut off some food and bring it up to you guys. No problem, princess" I mutter, working on the meat.

Bellamy chuckles, taking out his knife to help me.

I avert my eyes, grabbing a few pieces.

"Thanks" I mumble, hurrying back to the drop ship.

When I arrive, Jasper, Monty, Clarke, Finn, and Octavia are all waiting eagerly. I hand them each a stick, proud to help out.

"I made up something special for us all to drink tonight to celebrate" Monty grins, "You going to join us, Ali?"

I'm pleasantly surprised by the offer.

"I'd love to. I just have to go talk to John for a moment"

"We're all going to go sit by the fire in a few minutes, I set up a tent for Jasper and I nearby so we'll probably meet you out there".

"Sounds good, see you soon" I smile.

Outside, it takes me longer than I'd hoped to find John. He is standing in front of the tent he mentioned earlier.

"John" I say on approach.

"So this is why you had to talk to Octavia?" he says, gesturing at the groups of people eating.

"I needed to get some food for Jasper to recover and I knew that if Bellamy found out, he'd take charge of things and use it all for his own gain" I say honestly.

"I'm not Bellamy. Why don't you trust me anymore?" he says, going into the tent.

I follow him in.

"I just didn't want to put you in a position where you needed to lie to him!"

He turns to face me, searching my eyes, trying to believe me.

"You've changed" he sighs.

I walk over to stand in front of him.

"No, I haven't. I'm still me. I do trust you, more than anyone" I say with a small smile, holding his hand in mine, "Do _you_ trust _me_?"

He looks down at me, his blue eyes tired and somber.

"Of course I do" he says.

"Good" I say happily. "Now go get something to eat. Monty made up some drinks apparently, everyone is going to have some and just relax tonight. We have food, we have a tent, we have each other. Stop stressing!"

"Alright, alright. I'll see you out there" he says, giving me a rough hug.

I pull away from him and watch him leave.

Looking around the tent, I see some blankets laid out for sleeping on, scattered on one end of the tent. Back on the Ark it wasn't uncommon for us to share a bed sometimes but I wonder if for appearances sake we will try to avoid that down here.

Opting for figuring that out later, I make my way outside to the fire to meet my new friends.

 _Time to have some fun!_


	11. Chapter 11

_Hey everyone! Just wanted to take a moment to thank you all for reading. Please continue to review as I am always open to suggestions. Also, thank you to everyone who has favorited and followed this story, it lets me know that some people are actually enjoying and reading this :P_

 _Enjoy!_

* * *

 **Ali's POV**

After leaving the tent, I go straight to the fire. Clarke and Finn are already there having what seems to be a very intense conversation. So, in attempt to avoid any drama, I go sit down next to Octavia and Jasper instead.

"Hey guys"

The two look over and smile oddly,

"Ali, glad you decided to join us"

I look from one to the other.

"Why the sketchy smiles?" I ask.

The two look at each other and giggle childishly.

A hand lands on my shoulder and I look up to see Monty.

"They want to get you drunk so they can see how crazy wild you get" he says plainly, crossing his arms at them.

"Gee thanks Monty" Jasper says in annoyance.

I roll my eyes with a smile.

"Need any help with bringing things out Monty?" I ask.

"Actually yeah that would be great" he smiles.

In the tent, I notice Monty has gotten awfully quiet.

"What's wrong?" I ask bluntly.

He hesitates, debating whether or not to actually explain.

"It's just… okay… Ali, did you invite Murph—John… to join us?" he asks.

"Yeah… sort of. Why?" I start, feeling myself getting angry. Who is he to tell me I can't invite John?

"Relax, I'm not saying that it's a bad thing. I just wanted to know. Not everyone gets along with him and he doesn't exactly like all of us either. I don't want things to turn into a fight over something trivial, especially once booze are involved".

I listen carefully as he explains, my anger dissipating at the honesty in his voice.

"You're right… As long as nobody purposely riles him up, we should be fine. He is usually only violent around Bellamy and his gang of followers.

"Awesome" he smiles.

We grab the stuff and make our way to the fire for some fun.

 **Murphy's POV**

I finish my food slowly, lost in thought. I look over to the fire to see Ali sitting with her friends, laughing and sipping at a cup of god knows what. She doesn't see me staring, but Jasper does. I look away, scowling, unsure why I should feel embarrassed for just watching.

Lately I've found myself thinking about Ali a lot. She's always had a lot of male attention being in guard training, but she was always too busy for them and put me first. Now suddenly she has new friends and new interests.

Every time I see her talking so casually with Bellamy it makes my blood boil. Does she not see the way he sleeps around and schemes against the Ark? Is that the kind of guy she wants to be around? He may be able to get any girl he wants in this hormonal camp but not Ali. Not mine.

I have tried to get her attention. I've acted tough, strong, mean even. Yet, when she looks at me all she seems to see is her childhood friend who would rather sulk and complain than to get up and do something about his problems.

Not tonight. Tonight, I'm going to go over there and get her to see me again. I can play nice and have fun just like the rest of them if that's what it takes.

Standing up, I walk purposely over to the fire and sit down. The group look up at my arrival but Ali and Monty seem to be the only ones happy to see me.

"Did I miss anything?" I say, trying to keep my voice light and friendly.

They exchange a few looks before Jasper speaks up.

"Not at all, here, have some" he say, handing me a metal cup.

I take it, sniffing the contents. The smell is pungent and I am hesitant to drink it. But when I look up to see Ali watching me curiously, I bring the cup to my lips and take a big gulp of the drink. I cough once, trying to act like the liquid isn't burning a trail down my throat.

She giggles, turning back to Octavia to continue their conversation.

I look around, seeing that the group is separated into smaller pairs for the most part, having their own talks. Monty must have noticed how uncomfortable I am because he get up to address the group.

"Hey, why don't we all make a circle and play some drinking games or something. We're supposed to be having fun!"

The gang nods in agreement and a few other kids end up joining us as we all push some logs around to make a circle-like arrangement.

They decided on a game of Truth or Dare where, if you couldn't do the dare or refused to answer the truth question, you and whoever else is involved if it's a dare, have to drink. The catch is that if you drink your way out of it once, the next time you double the number of drinks. One time, twice, four times, eight. Needless to say, none of us have had much to drink since we got locked up and cannot handle much more than a few drinks.

The game starts off slowly with a lot of people opting for taking a drink or two instead of answering any of the really embarrassing questions or doing anything crazy.

However, as the game wears on, people become more and more willing to answer things that their sober self would cringe at.

"Octavia, truth or dare" Monty asks.

She grins widely, "dare!"

Monty and Jasper share a look.

"I dare you to kiss Jasper" he says and the two high five.

She rolls her eyes and turns to Jasper. Without hesitation she plants a sloppy kiss on his lips which he happily returned.

I look across the circle to see Ali watching them, laughing so hard that her drink spills a few drops which land on her thigh. I can't stop myself from staring, not used to seeing her so care-free and happy.

The guy next to her is laughing to, grabbing her hand and holding it to keep her drink steady. He grins at her and she, oblivious, thanks him and introduces herself.

I look down at my feet in frustration, this game really starting to annoy me.

"Ali" Octavia shouts, pointing at her enthusiastically.

I look up, my interest perked once more.

"Truth or daaaaare?" she slurs.

"Hmmm. Truth" she decides.

Octavia pauses, trying to think of a question. Suddenly her eyes light up.

"Okay, are you a virgin?" she asks, leaning forward as she does as if to make it more dramatic.

My choke on my drink mid sip, my eyes locking on hers.

I think for sure that she is going to drink to the question or get upset or something. Nobody knows about what really happened when she got locked up except for me and her. I know how unpredictably she can react to thinking about it.

I watch her carefully, waiting to see what she will choose to say.

 **Ali's POV**

I swallow the lump in my throat at the unexpected question, my drunk and emotional self not sure how to react. I see John staring at me, that knowing look in his eyes.

Brushing away all of the images that pop into my head, I just shrug at her.

"Nope" I say, my voice coming out steadier than I had expected.

Octavia's jaw drops and she bursts into a wide grin.

"I knew it! Who was it?!" she yells in excitement.

I clench my fists but keep a nonchalant expression on my face.

"You only get one question, O" I chuckle.

She pouts at me but I just ignore her, looking for the next person to ask. I see Finn and his long hair and immediately pick him.

"Finn. What's it gonna be?" I ask.

He picks dare, as I expected. I want to turn the attention away from all the romance stuff going around.

"I dare you to let us cut off all your hair" I smirk.

A few whoops and cheers come from the other kids, wanting him to do it.

He cringes, running a hand through his long hair.

"Nope, can't do it!" he calls out, shouting back at the people who boo him for it.

He lifts up his drink to us and then gulps down four mouthfuls in a row.

I shrug at him, laughing myself into a better mood.

He starts to ask the next person and I find myself looking around the circle, giggling at the way my vision is spinning slightly and I feel totally weightless. Suddenly all I want to do is get up and run around.

I bring myself back into the game to see it is Jasper's turn to ask someone.

He whispers in Octavia's ear and she gets excited.

"Murphy! Truth or dare?" Jasper shouts out.

 _Come on John, pick truth._

"Dare" he says, sitting casually with his arms crossed.

"I, dare you, to get smoochie smoochie with Ali" he slurs out, Octavia making kissy faces beside him.

My heart drops. Why would they ask that? They know we don't have anything romantic going on, so why?

I look over at him, wide eyed. Maybe I'm just too far gone and I'm seeing things, but he actually looks like he's thinking about it. He is looking at me intently, his expression blank.

I feel my face blushing but I'm not sure if it is from the alcohol or the way he's looking at me.

Trying to break the awkward silence, I laugh, holding up my cup.

"Guess we're drinking to that one!" I laugh, chugging down half my drink.

I put my cup down to see John, his expression somewhat bitter, slowly raise his cup to his lips and take two drinks.

Octavia whines at us but John just moves on and picks the next person, ignoring her.

As soon as the next person is done their turn, John gets up and, with a half-hearted wave to the group, heads out into the dark towards his tent.

I frown, watching him go. I know immediately that something is bothering him so I jump up to follow. As I'm leaving, Monty grabs my wrist and I look down at him in confusion.

"Are you sure you want to go follow him right now? Alone?" he asks, doubtful.

I just feel more confused.

"Yeah? He's my friend, I have to go make sure he's okay" I say, pulling away and leaving.

Slowly, I make my way through the night to the tent where John was heading, trying to get there without falling over.


	12. Chapter 12

**Ali's POV**

When I finally get to the tent, I burst right in. John is standing in front of me waiting, probably after hearing me approach.

"What's wrong? Why did you leave?" I ask, my voice sounding too loud for my liking.

He just looks at me, his expression so unreadable.

"John, what is it?" I ask again, stepping closer to try and get a better look at his face.

He looks down at the ground between us.

"Why were you so dead set against just kissing me?" he asks slowly.

My eyes widen, totally not expecting that to be the reason.

"What?" I say dumbly.

"It was just a kiss. For fun. It didn't have to mean anything" He reasons.

I take a step back in confusion but he takes a step forward to close the gap.

"I just… thought… I don't know… We don't… That's not us" I stammer, unable to think logically.

"Why not?" he asks, his blue eyes so intense that I feel my heart racing in my chest.

"Maybe I should just go" I giggle, trying to turn things into a joke.

As I move to leave, John's hand is suddenly gripping my wrist tightly.

I look down at where he holds me, confused at how he moved so fast.

"John, let go, I'm gonna go back to the fire for a bit" I laugh, tugging my arm.

I look up at his eyes that are staring down at mine.

His gaze drops to my lips and I swallow nervously.

"John?" I say, my voice small.

I feel his hands grip me by the waist and before I can process what's happening, he's crashing his lips against mine, his fingers digging into the tender skin of my waistline.

I gasp, my mind going blank as his mouth moves hungrily against my own, the smell of alcohol lingering between us.

As if by its own accord, I think I feel my own lips kissing him back, my body reacting to the way his hands feel on my body and his heat pressed against me.

Tugging me in closer, his one arm wraps around me tightly, holding me firmly against him while the other hand grips my jaw and face, preventing me from moving away at all.

A whimper escapes my throat as I try to pull away from him.

 _What's happening? This is John. This isn't right…_

I try more firmly to pull away but the alcohol has turned my muscles weak.

I begin to panic, pushing against his shoulders with both hands and trying to turn my head to the side.

"J…John stop" I whimper as he begins nipping roughly at my throat.

"Ali, stop fighting me. I know you better than anyone. I know you better than you know yourself. You want this, I know you do!" he shouts at me, holding me now by both wrists, glaring down at me with a hunger and lust in his eyes that I've never seen before.

I cower away from him, tears starting to stream down my cheeks.

My mind starts filling with images and memories, suddenly a much taller, stronger man with blond hair and a guard's uniform standing before me.

"No! What are you doing here?! You're on the Ark!" I cry out, thrashing my arms trying to pull away. I can feel the bruises forming under his fingers but I just pull harder.

"Ali?" he pauses, pulling me back closer to him.

"LET ME GO. WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME" I cry, opting to hammer my fists against his chest, kicking my legs at him.

Finally, he releases me.

I look up at him, my eyes a mixture of terror and hate. It takes me a moment to focus and realise that it isn't Nick standing in front of me. It's John. My John.

Unable to process everything that just happened, I rush for the tent exit, tripping over my feet as I go. I get outside and when the air hits me, I run. I run as fast as I possibly can to wherever my feet carry me.

Trees whip by me as I stumble through the underbrush. My shoulder smacks painfully into a tree trunk when my drunken mind doesn't see it. I barely feel the pain as I continue to run further and further from camp.

My body finally gives up on me and I sink to the ground. I am bewildered at the fact that I'm not that winded. The alcohol makes me feel invincible.

I lie down on my back, staring up at the stars through the trees. I just want to sleep and not wake up. Sleep forever in peace with no worries, no fears, just nothing but darkness.

"Ali?" comes a voice to my left.

I stare up at the sky, my body limp and exhausted. I feel defeated, no longer caring to fight away the approaching figure.

I hear the rustling of leaves as the person sits next to me. They don't speak, they just sit there.

Squinting my eyes open to get a look at who it is, I almost expect to find John there, looking at me with those beautiful, terrifying blue eyes.

My heart aches when I see Bellamy Blake sitting there, ankles crossed, staring at the ground.

Something about the way the streams of moonlight shine through the branches and glimmer off of his tousled hair and strong jaw makes me forget every reason I ever tried to keep away from this man.

He feels my gaze on him and turns to me, his brow furrowed in concern.

I struggle to a sitting position, confused at the way he is distancing himself from me. I crawl over to him, collapsing against his side. He doesn't move to hold me or touch me, swallowing roughly.

"Bells… I'm scared" I choke out, my voice rough from crying.

"Ali… what happened?" he asks somberly.

"I don't want to talk about that. Just stay with me, please… please don't be mad at me… please" I whimper.

With a decided sigh, he wraps his strong arm around me and pulls me in close. He tugs me onto his lap and my arms reflexively wrap around his neck, burying my tearstained face against his collarbone.

His arms go around my waist and he nuzzles his face against the top of my head, breathing in deeply.

We sit like this, my small form still shaking and my mind still fuzzy with the effects of the alcohol.

Bellamy begins to hum softly, the familiar tune I've been caught humming to myself when I need to calm down.

I pull away from him to stare up at his face. He's looking at me, eyes dark with emotion.

Before I can realise what I'm doing, I lean up to him and capture his mouth in a deep kiss.

He stills against me, his mouth reflexively surrenders to the kiss but he quickly pulls away, closing his eyes and sucking in a shaky breath.

I touch my fingertips to my lips, confused and wanting.

I raise a hesitant hand to rest on his chest but he takes it in his own and pulls it away.

"Ali, don't do this" he says slowly.

I frown at him, my vision spinning and my heart racing.

"I want you" I whisper, "I'm so sorry I fought you before, Bells… I… I want you, I don't know why I did that before… I just…"

Bellamy takes my face in one of his tan, calloused hands and I instinctively lean into his touch.

"You're drunk. You're upset right now and you don't know what you're saying".

I try to get closer but he grips my waist, holding me in place.

"I know I'm drunk but I don't care. Bellamy I want this, I swear, the other night in the cave I just… I don't know what came over me".

"I do" he says firmly, "Something happened to you Ali and you're not telling me the whole story. Maybe you do have feelings for me… I don't know… and maybe it isn't my business to know the whole story. But this isn't going to happen. Not tonight. Not like this".

Before I can say anything in response, he's pulling us to standing.

My brain is a mess of jumbled thoughts and I try to make sense of what Bellamy has said with little luck. Dizzy from standing up, I lean against his strong shoulder, shutting my eyes tightly to try and block out the waves of disorientation.

He turns me to face him, hands moving to my shoulder. I feel a stinging sensation and shrug him away. However, his hands return instantly and he's taking my hand in his, tugging me along with him.

"It's time to go back to camp, ok? Come on, I've got you" he murmurs, leading me forward.

"Ok" I whisper, closing my eyes again.


	13. Chapter 13

The camp is quiet when we return. All of the kids have finished partying and are either in their tents or on their way there.

Slowly, Bellamy guides me through camp, his arm wrapped around me in support. I pause when I see John's tent. My tent.

"No" he says, following my gaze, "you can stay in my tent tonight".

I look away from the tent and up at him.

"Unless you'd prefer to stay with someone else that is…" he clarifies, "I could talk to Monty and Jasper… or Octavia maybe…"

"Your tent is fine" I murmur, closing my eyes and touching my fingertips to my temple, my head starting to ache.

With a nod, he walks me towards his tent.

We're nearly there when I hear Monty calling my name. He jogs over to us from the fire, his face worried.

"Ali, are you alright?"

I try to smile at him but it comes out as more of a grimace.

"Yeah, I'm fine" I say.

"She's not fine" Bellamy grunts and I look down at my feet.

Monty looks to Bellamy, "What happened?"

Bellamy frowns, "I don't know the details, but you were right to come find me. By the time I got there she was gone. Murphy asked me to go find her, said he messed up".

My eyes snap up to look at Bellamy, this is new information to me.

 _So Bellamy doesn't know what happened…_

Monty swallows uncomfortably, nodding in understanding.

"Ok, well, I just wanted to make sure you're ok. And drink some water before you go to sleep, you're going to feel a bit hungover pretty soon. Night Ali".

I smile distractedly, thinking about what Bellamy said.

Before Monty walks away, Bellamy leans in and whispers something to him before leading me towards his tent again.

I watch Monty leave, curious as to what Bellamy told him but too drained to pay it any more attention.

When we get into the tent, the bed is a welcoming sight. I trudge over to it and try to lie down on it, my muscles screaming in protest. I cringe at the feeling of my shoulder against the surface.

I can feel Bellamy's eyes on me so I attempt to hide how uncomfortable I am. It doesn't work.

"Let me see your arm" he says firmly, coming to sit next to me on the bed.

Hesitantly, I turn my body so he can see my shoulder.

He places a large hand on my forearm, leaning in to get a better look.

I close my eyes, relishing in the feeling of his warm hand against my skin. I am disappointed when he removes his hand, opening my eyes again.

He takes my hand and turns my arm over, his face grim. I follow his eyes to my wrists and my heart sinks.

The whole lower half of my arms are littered with distinct bruising. I can make out the shape of a hand print instantly.

He doesn't say anything, holding my arm in one hand while tracing the bruises delicately with his other hand.

"It isn't as bad as it looks" I say, trying to downplay things.

He looks up at me, his eyes stern. I look away, unable to meet his eyes.

He reaches over and pulls my other arm towards him to examine. I shift my body around to face him, watching him carefully.

His eyes are on my throat now and I raise a hand to my neck self-consciously. When I do, I can feel sore spots along one side and realize John did a lot more damage than I'd realized in the moment. My eyes start to water when I think of John, my John, hurting me. It just doesn't make sense.

Bellamy looks even angrier at this, but I cannot bring myself to try and defend John.

He scans me again, looking to see if anything else is hurt. I suck in a breath as he reaches for my shirt, pulling it up and exposing my stomach.

I look down and catch a glimpse of the handprints there as well, especially dark in the places where his fingertips dug into me.

"I'm going to kill him" Bellamy growls, dropping my shirt back down.

I'm about to respond when Clarke walks into the tent. I spot Monty behind her before he walks away, back to his tent.

 _So that's what Bellamy whispered to him._

Bellamy stands up stiffly and steps to the side to let Clarke through.

"Hey… I hear you hurt your shoulder pretty bad" she says, eyeing it as she speaks.

I nod, turning sideways to give her better access. I watch Bellamy pace as she examines me, not sure how to make him relax.

Clarke takes a cloth and starts to clean the wound.

"How did this happen?" she asks, still working.

I look over to Bellamy but when I catch his eye he just looks away, leaving me to explain on my own.

"I uh… I ran into a tree" I mutter, embarrassed.

"How?" she asks, clearly not buying it.

"I dunno, drunk people make mistakes" I say, glancing up to gauge Bellamy's reaction. He isn't impressed.

"And sometimes drunk people show their true colours after a bit of liquid courage" he counters, stopping his pacing.

Clarke pauses, looking from me to him, "Look, I don't know what happened tonight and I really don't care. The last thing I need to deal with is more drama. All I care about is where you're hurt and how bad. Is this your only injury?"

"Yep" I say, getting up and clasping my hands behind my back to hide my arms.

To my surprise, Bellamy says nothing.

Satisfied, Clarke gets up to leave.

"Keep that bandaging on it for now, I'll check on you later to see if it's healing well. It's nothing major, you'll be fine"

I force a smile at her and wave goodbye as she leaves, eager to get some sleep.

Unfortunately for me, Bellamy isn't quite so ready to drop the conversation.

"You're not staying with him anymore" he grunts, rubbing a hand along his jaw as he paces.

I glare up at him. This over-protective act is getting old really fast.

"I don't need your help, Bellamy. I've known John since I was a child, I know he would never hurt me on purpose".

Bellamy halts his pacing, turning to give me an incredulous look.

"You're joking, right?" he asks, his tone far from amused.

I stand up, grimacing at my sore muscles, but my mouth is set in a stubborn line. I refuse to back down and be treated like a helpless child.

He takes a threatening step forward, towering over me. I cross my arms firmly, meeting his eyes. We've played this game before and I won't let him win. I can _feel_ the waves of frustration radiating from his body as we stand there, unblinking, unmoving, unwavering.

Suddenly, he raises his arm up in one swift motion.

I flinch away, cowering backwards and whip my arms up to cover my face. Tense, I wait for the impact of his hand against me.

When the hit never comes, I open my eyes, blinking, to see his hand raised up beside himself, not moving, not even close to me. The look in his eyes says it all. His dark brown orbs burn with a mixture of pity and anger that makes me want to flinch away more than his hand did.

"Anyone would react to that" I whisper, eyes on the ground.

Without a word, he comes closer, stopping just in front of me.

To my surprise, his raised hand moves to my face, gently brushing my hair from my face. I tilt my chin up to ask what he's doing, confused at the sudden gesture, but the question catches in my throat at the look he's giving me.

His eyes aren't on mine, they're lower, transfixed on my lips. He stands so casually, so close…

I feel my heart pick up and all thoughts of John and the events of the night disappear into the fogginess of my mind.

After a moment, his brows furrow and he turns his face away, eyes downward; his expression torn.

He starts to pull his hand away and, instinctively, my hand races up to catch his; to stop him from cutting the connection we just had. My hand touches his but he pulls his away.

"You need to sleep" he sighs, still not looking at me.

I swallow the lump in my throat, letting my arm fall back to my side. I sit down on the bed, frowning.

"I'm not tired anymore" I state, hating how immature I sound.

His lips turn up just slightly at the corners, amused.

"That's too bad, just lie down and try" he says, heading for the door.

"Wait!" I call, trying to think of a reason for doing so.

He stops, looking back at me over his shoulder.

"Yes?"

"Stay" I say, my mind panicked over the thought of being alone.

He turns around but says nothing, contemplating what to do.

"Please…" I whisper, my voice pleading now.

With one more look behind him, he finally nods.

"Alright, fine. As long as you sleep" he grunts, walking over.

I throw him a genuine smile, relief washing over me.

He rolls his eyes, shrugging his jacket off and tossing it to the side. I try to keep my eyes of his hands as he unbuckles his belt that carries his weapons, sliding it off and dropping it next to the jacket. However, he catches me staring almost instantly.

"You might want to wipe that drool off your face, we're just sleeping" he chuckles, sauntering over to the bed.

I feel my face flush with embarrassment and annoyance.

"Yeah, keep dreaming Bells" I huff, lying down, rolling to face away from him.

I hear a chuckle behind me, my senses super aware of the feeling of his weight on the bed as he lies down on his back, his arm brushing against my back for a split second before moving away. I keep my eyes glued to the wall as he grabs a makeshift blanket from the end of the bed and tugs it over us.

With the cover added, I start to feel our body heat mingling, heating me up and bringing back the drowsiness from before. I welcome sleep as my thoughts fade away to the sound of Bellamy's steady breathing.

 _Sleep…_


	14. Chapter 14

**Ali's POV**

I wake up slowly, my body aching and sore. It's still early and the room is dark. I open my eyes and blink a few times to try and adjust my vision. I shift cautiously, suddenly becoming very aware of Bellamy's arm around me, my body pulled close to his.

 _Of course._

I slide my hand up and press my palm to my forehead, cringing at the ringing in my ears. My mouth feels like it's full of cotton and my throat is hoarse, an all-around gross feeling.

I bury my face in Bellamy's chest, breathing in deeply. My aching head tells me to curl up closer and let the warmth and darkness wash over me once more. However, my dry mouth tells me it's time to get up and clean myself up before everyone else is up.

Ruefully, I lift Bellamy's hand off of my hip and lay it next to me, lifting myself up to sitting as I do so. Instantly I feel a wave of nausea rushing over me and press the back of my hand to my lips, squinting my eyes shut in focus.

 _Don't throw up. Don't throw up. You got this._

In one swift motion, I swing myself up and over his arm and off of the bed. I pause to make sure he's still fast asleep before I slip on my jacket and duck out of the tent.

The fresh air hits me and I drink it in eagerly. I look down at myself and sigh. I need a wash.

Knife in hand, I take off into the woods. I follow a familiar trail, stumbling slowly along and trying not to trip on anything.

My mind is moving slowly, my reaction time foggy. So when a twig snaps behind me, I feel as though I'm moving in slow motion as I turn to face the threat.

I stop in a defensive position, my dizzy eyes falling into focus on a nervous looking Monty who stands about a meter away, hands up in surrender.

I sigh, dropping my hand down to my side.

"Hey" I croak, my voice tired.

"Sorry" he starts, "I saw you leaving and I was worried you might pass out somewhere and get eaten by radioactive wolves".

"Or grounders" I smirk, starting to walk again.

"Wait, where are you going, anyways?" he asks, jogging to catch up to me.

"Water" I say bluntly, too groggy to think of a better sentence.

"Water. Got it" he confirms.

After another few minutes, we reach the clearing I was looking for with a shallow pool of water surrounded by rock and shrubbery.

"Aaaah, water" Monty says in understanding.

I nod, trudging over to it. I grab the bottom of my shirt and tug it over my head, tossing it on the ground. Then, unclasping my bra, I toss that down too.

I hear Monty cough behind me.

"Ummmm, ok yeah… did you want me to go? I can go…" he stammers.

I turn around in annoyance, my headache still putting a damper on my mood.

"I don't care. You can wash off too, you know. Chill" I explain.

I raise my eyebrow in amusement at Monty's red face and the way he's trying to look everywhere but at my chest.

"Right, sure. Maybe in a bit" he says, pointing to a flat rock off to the side, "I'm just gonna… yeah".

I chuckle, stripping off my pants and underwear before slipping into the water. It's cold, the brisk chill clearing my head and washing away the nauseous feeling. I sink down and lie back, letting my hair soak in the water. I try my best to scrub it down and then do the same for the rest of my body. I rip a chunk of moss off of a rock and use it to scrub away some of the dried blood on my arm. I toss the bandage aside that Clarke has put on it.

"About last night" Monty says, looking at his hands.

"I'm fine. It wasn't a big deal" I sigh.

I can tell by the look of frustration on his face that he doesn't like my response.

"You're not fine" he says quietly, "What he did, is _not_ fine".

I get out and sit on a rock, letting myself dry off before I get dressed.

"I was drunk" I state, "So was he".

At this, Monty looks up at me in exasperation, "So?!"

"So he wouldn't have done it otherwise. I would have stopped him" I shrug.

"Ali. He attacked you" he says sternly.

"Nothing. Happened" I grit out, grabbing my clothes and getting dressed.

Monty gets up and walks over to me, arms crossed.

"The point is that something could have happened. Or you could have run off and been caught by grounders or God knows what. What if Bellamy didn't find you? What if you died out there last night?"

"But that didn't happen! I can take care of myself, ok?!" I yell.

I turn around and take off back towards camp, not looking back. I know I shouldn't be mad at Monty, but I can't help it. I'm so embarrassed by it all… I should've been able to stop him.

I get into camp and people are up and working again. I pause at the entrance, unsure what to do.

Just as I decide to go find Bellamy or Clarke to see what jobs I can help with, I spot John by the fire. He sees me too and starts towards me.

I grit my teeth and walk in the other direction towards Bellamy's tent.

"Ali!" he calls, "Ali wait! I need to talk to you!"

I hear him jogging up behind me and I whip around, yanking my knife from its holder and gripping it firmly, held out in front of me.

He stops a few feet away, eyeing my weapon and then me.

"Ali…" he starts, clearly unsure what to say.

"Walk away" I say, "I don't want to talk".

He takes another step forward, eyes pleading, and hands up. I stop him in his tracks with my knife up against his throat.

"I'm so sorry" he murmurs, "I don't know what came over me… I feel terrible"

"Leave" I hiss, taking the knife away and turning around to walk away.

"Wait, Ali" he says, stepping forward and putting a hand on my shoulder to stop me.

The next thing I know, his hand is ripped off me and Bellamy is there, throwing him to the ground. He stands in front of me, glaring down at John, knuckles white with rage.

"Bellamy, back off" I say sternly, gripping his elbow.

He jerks his arm away, looking from me to John.

"How can you defend this sack of shit? After what he did?"

I glare at him and then at John.

"I can take care of myself. Both of you just piss off and leave me alone, okay?! What's done is done. There are more important issues at hand around here so cut the drama and move the fuck on".

With that, I take off back towards the woods.

 _Looks like I'm going hunting today._


End file.
